Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Thanks to the dedication of essential personnel who oversaw the Rose Hill campus through Hurricane Sandy, the view of Edwards Parade (above) on Oct. 30 was calm and intact.

Sporting a slight stubble from two days on the job, hospitality services manager Brian Poteat said that service workers stayed for the duration to keep students well-fed, while some 120 members of Fordham’s facilities management worked 24/7 to keep buildings functioning and to secure the campus. By Tuesday, many damaged trees had been cut back and barricades put in place to keep the community safe.

Students at Martyrs Court were prepared.

Food service staff had been on duty since Sunday, when the University’s Ram Vans picked them up directly from their homes and brought them to work during the storm. The University housed its staff in nearby hotels.

Rose Hill freshman Arthur Van Sutendael, who lives in Alumni Court South, said that Sandy gave him a chance to interact more with his dorm mates when internet service went down.

“We played apples-to-apples, it was really fun,” he said.

"This wasn’t scary, but then I’m from Florida,” he added. “We have a lot of hurricanes.”

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Philosopher Jean (John) Buridan (1300-1362) was a French priest who sowed the seeds of the Copernican revolution in Europe. He developed the concept of impetus, credited with being the first step toward the modern concept of inertia.

A celebrated philosopher in his own time, Buridan has recently made a comeback in the 20th century for his innovative natural philosophy and nominalist logic. On Oct. 26-28, academics from around the world will come to Fordham University for “Questions on the Soul By John Buridan and Others,” a three-day conference devoted to Buridan’s philosophy of mind, to be held on the Lincoln Center campus.

“Nowadays, questions about the soul (or the mind or the self) are apparently resisting analysis mostly because they are at the crossroads of several disciplines, each carrying their own often conflicting presumptions, said Gyula Klima, Ph.D., professor of philosophy at Fordham. "We can have a better understanding of these presumptions themselves, and thus a better chance at resolving these conflicts, if we look at them from a historical perspective, when they first emerged in late-medieval philosophy.

"This conference is a gathering of the best international specialists in the field, looking at Buridan’s work not only from the perspective of historical scholarship, but also from the contemporary perspective of what we can learn from Buridan’s Questions on the Soul regarding our own questions about the same.”

Klima said there has been an ongoing project to produce a critical edition and English translation of Buridan’s text by an international team of scholars from Canada, the Netherlands and the United States. An annotated, bilingual edition of Buridan’s work will be published by Fordham University Press in the series Medieval Philosophy: Texts and Studies, as a four-volume set, containing the three books of Buridan’s commentary and a companion volume resulting from the presentations at this conference.

The event is being sponsored by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the John P. McCaskey Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Fordham Westchester will host a Fall Open House on Tuesday, Oct. 30 from 4:30 p.m.- 6:30 p.m. in celebration of its fifth year in West Harrison, N.Y. and over 35 years in Westchester.

The golf tee columns loom.
Photo by Bill Denison

Come enjoy peak autumn colors at the 32-acre hilltop campus and tour the Modernist gem of a building designed by architect Victor Bisharat. Born in Jerusalem and educated at Berkley, Bisharat's work is not well known outside of Connecticut. The New York Times said he was the "architect most closely associated with Stamford's commercial development" from the late 1960s through the 1970s. And Stamford Magazine credited him for bringing a "Modernist celebration of cutting-edge space age architecture" to that city's skyline.

Bisharat, who died in 1996, brought his space age zing to Harrison, New York in 1967. Initially built for a long-gone telephone company, the building's golf tee-like columns and demi-moon balconies were restored during Fordham's renovation. The project won BOMA Westchester's 2009 Building of the Year award.

Architect Victor Bisharat
Courtesy Stamford Magazine

The campus quickly settled into its role as one of the area's leading institutions and the festivities will celebrate the community with live jazz, food, and prizes. Fordham representatives will be on hand to answer questions about the undergraduate programs, as well as master’s degree programs in business administration, education, religion and religious education, and social service.

For further information contact Grant Grastorf, grastorf@fordham.edu or (914) 367-3202.

Ribalow, of the Department of Communication and Media Studies, was a well-known film scholar and prolific playwright, having written 24 plays and numerous books, articles, and poems on a range of topics, including theater, sports, chess, and travel. His award-winning plays have been produced more than 180 times in cities throughout North America and Europe.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Fordham recently played host
to the third annual Festival de la Palabra / Festival of the Word—an
event that celebrates Spanish language writers.

The event began on
Oct. 4 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It continued with more than 30 diverse
writers from Spain and Latin America at various venues across New York City
from Oct. 8-11.

La Festival de la Palabra is
an international literary festival that brings together some of the most
exciting contemporary authors writing in Spanish with diverse academic and
non-academic community audiences to debate, explore, and celebrate writing from
Latin America, Spain and its Spanish-speaking diasporas, including the United
States, said Mayra Santos-Febres,
a Puerto Rican author, poet, novelist, professor of literature,
and literary critic who has garnered fame at home and abroad for her
first two collections of poetry,Anamu y manigua and El orden escapado.

“We know Puerto
Rico is a natural destination for so many kinds of tourism,” she says. “Three
years ago we asked ourselves, why not host a literary festival in order to
attract even more people?”

This year’s
festival included writers from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, the Dominican
Republic, Guadaloupe-France, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Spain to New York City to
participate in readings, presentations, for a, debates, and workshops.

At Fordham’s
Lincoln Center campus on Oct. 11, there were readings and discussion on, “Writing (in) the Hispanic
Caribbean,” withAnna Lidia Vega Serovaof Cuba,Pedro Antonio Valdezof the Dominican Republic, andLuis Negronof Puerto Rico. The event was hosted by the Department of Modern Languages and Literature.

Dominican writer, Valdez, said people have
accused be of being too Dominican in his work. Responding
to a student question about the inspiration for his stories, he said, “I want to tell
the stories of my barrio. I want to impress what it is like to my readers.”

WriterCharlie Vázquez,
author of the novelContraband (Rebel Satori Press, 2010), and the bilingual poemsMeditations, coordinated
the New York City portion of the festival and helped choose the writers along
with Febres and a colleague in Lisbon.

As an active
writer, Vázquez says he felt honored to invite friends who are actively writing
and publishing to participate in the festival.

“And they, in turn,
get to meet writers from around the world,” he said, adding that the festival
has inspired him to start writing in Spanish.

“I was educated in
English in New York City public schools and brought up in bilingual homes where
some of my older relatives only spoke Spanish. One of the things I’ve learned
as a result of all of this is that Spanish is more than just a beautiful and
popular and inherently poetic language, it’s also a passport to a large portion
of the Earth’s readers, on different continents. I have grown as a writer
because of it, and that, in itself, is a priceless education,” Vázquez said.

On the heels of its third urban dialogue panel on Oct. 10, Fordham’s Urban Studies program welcomes Tom Angotti, Ph.D., professor of Urban Affairs and Planning at Hunter College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York.

Angotti, who is also director of Hunter College’s Center for Community Planning & Development, joins Fordham as the first Urban Studies Distinguished Scholar.

He will be at Fordham all this week, participating in undergraduate and graduate courses, meeting with students and faculty, and delivering a public lecture, "The New Century of the Metropolis: Urban Enclaves and Orientalism."

Wednesday, October 24

5:30 p.m.

South Lounge

Lincoln Center campus

Angotti’s most recent book, The New Century of the Metropolis: Enclave Development and Urban Orientalism, was published by Routledge in 2011. His tome New York For Sale: Community Planning Confronts Global Real Estate (MIT Press, 2008) won the Paul Davidoff Award in 2009 and International Planning History Society Book Prize in 2010.

New Village Press recently published Service-Learning in Design and Planning: At the Boundaries, which he co-edited with Cheryl Doble and Paula Horrigan. His other books include Metropolis 2000: Planning Poverty and Politics and Housing in Italy. (Routledge, 1993)

The distinguished scholar program brings internationally known urban studies scholars and practitioners to Fordham to interact with students, faculty, and the life of the university. It is made possible by a gift from Podell, Schwartz, Schechter & Banfield, LLP.

“Women:
Pillars of Socio-Economic Development Fabric,” which coincided with the
International Day of Rural Women, featured:

Margarette Tropnas, board president of The
Haiti Initiative at Social Tap, Inc.;

Marciana Popescu, Ph.D., associate
professor at GSS;

Colette Mazzucelli, Ph.D., professor at
the New York University Center for Global Affairs;

Diana Duarte, communications director
at MADRE;

Melika Edquist, web specialist for the
Center for International Earth Science Information Network at Columbia
University; and

Moderator Matthias Resch, executive director of
Community Development International (CDi).

The panelist’s
presentations covered an array of topics, said Resch, ranging from Tropnas’s
description of growing up in rural Haiti, to Mazzucelli’s explanation of the
SMS data service known as Crisis Mapping,
which disseminates information about unfolding humanitarian crises.

One topic
spotlighted during the evening was an ongoing collaboration among several of
the participants—the Clean Fuels and Cook Stoves for Haiti project. An effort
to provide clean cooking fuels to rural families, the project has a particular impact
on women and girls, who are responsible for collecting firewood and cooking
meals, Resch said.

A video
shown during the evening revealed that the current use of wood-based fuels
causes numerous health, safety, and environmental problems. Long walks to
collect firewood leave women and girls vulnerable to violence; inhaling fumes
while cooking can lead to severe respiratory problems. According to the video,
between 1.6 and 3 million children die each year from indoor pollution.

In Haiti,
the use of wood-based fuels has also prompted a national deforestation crisis.

“Ninety-eight
percent of the country is deforested,” Resch said. “And the fact that there are
no more trees causes an increased vulnerability to landslides, flash floods,
and hurricanes.”

Briquettes made from recycled
waste provide a cleaner
alternative to wood-based
cooking fuel

The group
plans to launch three pilot projects in Haiti to evaluate the energy needs of
rural communities and introduce clean fuels in lieu of firewood and wood-based
charcoal. These include briquettes from recycled waste (such as coconut
husks) and ethanol distilled from sugar cane.

In addition
to improving the health and safety of thousands of women and girls, the
production of new fuels can create economic opportunities for the local
participants.

“It’s about
community embedment and developing resources that are already there —bottom up
instead of top down work, and local empowerment and local solutions instead of
external inputs,” Resch said. “It’s about inclusion and participation… a living
example of what it means to work with communities, work with women, and empower
them.”

To watch the
video shown at the panel, and to participate in the group’s effort to win a donation
from the company Cultivate, click here.

In September of 1912, Fordham was the site of a watershed moment in the history of psychoanalysis.

Renowned psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Carl Jung delivered a series of lectures that set the stage for his future work—including a decisive break from the theories of his friend and colleague, Sigmund Freud.

On Oct. 26, Fordham will mark the 100th anniversary of this milestone in psychoanalysis with a two-day conference at the site of the original lectures.

Helping gear up an audience of 1,500 for a debate-viewing evening at Harlem’s Apollo Theater, Greer surveyed the panelists, who ranged from conservatives (American Spectator columnist William Tucker) to activists (WBAI commentator Esther Armah and Amsterdam News’ Herb Boyd) and everything in between, with a set of questions, including:

What will Romney eagerly try to address? (Answers: Libya, unemployment under Obama, his human side)

What will Obama try to address? (Answers: Why he’s worthy of another term, his confidence, Romney’s inaccuracies)

But the thought-provoking pre-debate banter between panelists was just an appetizer for the main event: the rousing, sparring jangle between the President and his challenger, Mitt Romney, which was viewed on a large screen in the landmark theater.

Following one pre-debate question from a Green Party supporter on the pointlessness of voting, Greer summed up a political truism just before the on-screen debate began: if you don’t vote, you have no right to complain.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

A new on-campus phonathon program opened on Oct. 15 at Rose Hill, to help raise vital annual fund dollars to advance Fordham’s mission--all while providing jobs for University students.

The new calling center, which is housed in O’Hare Hall, will employ at least 20 Fordham students in flexible evening shifts to call alumni, parents, and friends of the University. Fordham partnered with strategic fundraising company RuffaloCODY to develop the student-based phonathon fundraising program.

Michelle Garland, the program center manager for Fordham’s phonathon, said student callers will speak to between 400 and 500 people each evening, especially alumni, parents and friends of the University, to invite them to participate by giving back to the University. The students will also collect updated information on those friends and alumni, and share campus news and upcoming events with them.

“We are also asking them to get involved, or to continue being involved, by supporting the Fordham Annual Fund to support the greatest needs of the University,” Garland said.

Zachary Vasile, a junior communications major,
is one of 20 new student staffers.

Contributions to the Annual Fund provide unrestricted funds that Fordham can apply to needs that arise anywhere in the University. In particular, this type of gift helps close the gap between tuition and the cost of a Fordham education.

Sydney Plant, assistant vice president for annual giving, said these types of gifts help enhance everything from campus facilities to libraries to academic programs—enhancements that add even more value to the investment of a Fordham education.

“The more we are able to do those things, the more Fordham’s name stays on the forefront, making the school increasingly valuable as a lifelong connection,” Plant said.

For students who are passionate about Fordham University, Garland said calling alumni and friends of the University is a great way to connect with the Fordham family.

“It gives students another opportunity to get advice from alumni who have been in their shoes, and an opportunity to get some career advice or networking opportunities,” she said.

Zachary Vasile, a Fordham College at Rose Hill junior, was the first to show up for the program's opening shift.
"We're helping to keep alumni involved, which helps Fordham present itself as a better school," said Vasile, a communications major. "And of course, the Fordham Fund helps to defray the cost of school of students -- so I think this job is unique and critical to the University."

Garland said student workers at other universities have found a career path in advancing the mission of their alma maters. Many student phonathon workers have started a career in development after their experiences calling alumni, she said.

Monday, October 15, 2012

Tom DeJulio (FCRH ’73, LAW ’77), Fordham’s general counsel and current president of Kiwanis International, and his wife, Rosemary DeJulio (GSAS’90, GSE ’00), are featured on the cover of Kiwanis Magazine’s October/November 2012 issue, and are the subject of a long article about their global service and their Fordham and Kiwanis families.

This panel,
conducted with non-specialists in mind, will provoke Christians to think about
other animals in new ways. Currently a very hot topic in academic theology and
philosophy, concern for non-human animals is gaining traction in the broader
culture, and our panel will try to connect academic and popular themes, in
language that is accessible to a broad audience.

Peter
Singer—in addition to being the most influential philosopher alive today—was
the intellectual heft behind the beginning of the animal rights movement in the
1970s. David Clough is one of the leading voices in defense of animals in the
contemporary Christian conversation, and Eric Meyer’s research has mined the
Christian tradition in ways that turn the current debate about animals on its
head. We are also fortunate to have R.R. Reno play the all-important role of
‘sympathetic skeptic’ in our discussion. The conversation will be accessible to
non-specialists.

Friday, October 5, 2012

Fordham
General Counsel brought some maroon to the White House on Sept. 21 for the inaugural
Kiwanis International Day.

Thomas DeJulio,
LAW ’77, who serves as general counsel for the University and is this year’s
president of Kiwanis International, played a leading role in a ceremony
recognizing 14 Kiwanis “Champions of Change.”

“The
Champions of Change program was created to honor ordinary Americans doing extraordinary
work in their communities,” DeJulio said.

The 14
honorees, ranging in age from 11 to 85, represented every facet of Kiwanis,
including elementary school Kiwanis Kids, high school Key Club members,
collegiate Circle K members, and members of Aktion Club. Their service ranges
from working to help eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus to running a
crayon recycling project.

The honorees
shared their stories with White House officials and Kiwanis members from around
the world, and also met legislators at a congressional reception the night
before. At the ceremony, DeJulio addressed the Champions and presented
commendations to Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, who is retiring after decades
of service, and to Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida, who served as Key Club International
president in 1959-60.

DeJulio
began his tenure with Kiwanis as a member of the Key Club at Mount Vernon High
School, and later became charter president of the Circle K Club at Fordham.
After graduating, he became a member of the Kiwanis Club of Mount Vernon, and eventually
served as the group’s president. Since 1989, he has been a member of the
Kiwanis Club of Fordham.

“We all
volunteer a lot of time and service in Kiwanis, but we receive a lot of
blessings as well,” DeJulio said.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Fordham University at Lincoln Center will play host to THATCamp, The Humanities and Technology Camp. The free event is being organized with Hunter College and New York University. The informal sessions melds technology and the humanities for researchers, students, librarians, archivists, curators, educators, and technologists.

The "unconference” springs from a worldwide series that is devoted to hands-on work and discussion of the intersection of technology and the humanities. No papers are proposed or presented and the agenda is being debated online right now. The topics of discussion will be decided on Friday night and play out over the course of Saturday afternoon. The spontaneous atmosphere allows everyone involved to participate.

In addition to support from the University, the Fordham Digital Humanities Working Group, and Fordham IT, the event is being funded by Hunter College Library, the CUNY Libraries, New York University Libraries, and JSTOR/Ithaka.

During their time at the Graduate School of Social Service (GSS), social work students prepare themselves to face long but rewarding hours serving others. What students don’t always prepare for is how they will sustain themselves emotionally and financially throughout their careers in the field.

GSS’s Institute for Women & Girls, however, is bringing those topics to light, kicking off the year with an open discussion on navigating the social work profession.

A panel of four female social workers will share their unique experiences in the field, and tackle topics ranging from choosing a specialty to negotiating salaries and balancing family life.

“There are a lot of things these young women are thinking about,” said Rachelle Kammer, Ph.D., assistant professor at GSS and director of the Institute for Women & Girls. “I put myself in the mindset of an incoming student who has an interest in social work, but doesn’t really know what they can do with the degree, or what the field is about, or even how to make money and balance having children or a relationship.”

The panelists, who represent an array of field and life experiences, include:

Pearl Fiske, a social worker with the New York City Department of Education, specializing in children with special needs, and an adjunct professor of social work at GSS;

Monday, October 1, 2012

For the first time, the Fordham’s Schools of Business management systems area was included in “Research Productivity Ranking,” a survey jointly published by Texas A&M University and the University of Florida.

The survey analyzes the contributions of management departments in U.S. and Canadian universities to the top eight journals: Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Review, Administrative Science Quarterly, Journal of Applied Psychology, Organization Science, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Personnel Psychology, and Strategic Management Journal.

Fordham scored a 66 ranking in the 2011 survey, which it shared with 25 other universities, including Columbia and Georgetown Universities. The survey included a total of 170 colleges and universities.